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The Dogs of War

Blackwater's killing of a New York Times dog might be a small incident, but it also represents something larger. And it gets worse, with private U.S. firms now being accused or rape and murder, with few repercussions beyond some embarrassing media coverage.

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Blackwater is not the problem, it is a symptom: A symptom of a rush to war on the cheap and without proper planning, and a symptom of our bias toward privatization combined with a failure to establish clear rules for just who these private contractors are accountable to.

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Several U.S. senators also made a "fact-finding" trip to Iraq this week, but it was McCain who got all the attention, as the presumptive Republican presidential nominee and as a longtime supporter of the invasion, occupation, and surge.

Eliot Spitzer has exited the public stage, but he leaves plenty of questions behind. We're particularly interested to learn how the whole investigation fell into place, and what role, if any, political interference may have played in bringing down one of the top enemies of corporate America.

While John McCain clinched the Republican nomination this week, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama will likely be battling for the Democratic mantle for another six weeks at least. The message is clear: voters are engaged. No others need apply.

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The luxury liner of consumerism has smacked into the iceberg. Sarah Palin can cry "socialism" and let slip the dogs of McCarthy, but Republicans have burned even their most flimsy credibility. And yet President-Elect Obama is just a man. Can he actually save a grateful nation?

I, like God, love me some Old Handsome Joe. There is a true kindness, a true goodness, which he wields like a weapon, hiding that big sexy brain behind his Simple Joe grin, and rope-a-doping 'em better than anybody I know.

As an actual feminist, I have the great good joy of getting to determine what is and isn't sexist. Sexist: Asking whether Sarah Palin shouldn't be staying home with her baby and her other children. (And yes, I've heard you asking just that.) Not sexist: Pointing out that Sarah Palin is an utter twit.

Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, masters of evil John Yoo and David Addington pop back up, like Jason or a platter of undercooked pork, to tell the U.S. Congress how much they'd really like to take that water and pour it over your blindfolded and Saran-wrapped face.